WALES managed to restore some pride and dignity to the red jersey against France with a spirited effort, but today the objective is a little more tangible - Wales must win.

The management talk of another improvement in performance and quite rightly so, but playing reasonably well and losing against Italy would be nothing short of disaster.

I don't expect it to be easy, although it may turn out that way in the absence of the influential Italian tactician Diego Dominguez. But victory must be assured by the time the referee blows his whistle or calls for the final video replay.

Steve Hansen seems to be learning more about the players under his charge as he tinkers with the starting line-up to meet Italy. It may be that he is reverting to the traditional view that the hard Welsh forwards come from Gwent by including Ian Gough and Iestyn Thomas in the pack and Chris Wyatt on the bench. A new pair in the boilerhouse will take the responsibility of winning line-out ball but, in that respect, Robin McBryde is downright lucky to have kept his spot.

The turning point against France was the run of three consecutive line-outs that Wales lost in the first half. So disjointed were the attempts by the players to grab the ball that the line-out looked more like a Mexican Wave than anything else.

McBryde is an honest and rugged forward but the fragility in his throwing remains a problem. Pontypridd's Mefin Davies appears to have the most reliable aim of all the contenders and unless the errors can be eliminated changing the hooker will be the next option.

I was somewhat surprised that there were no changes behind the scrum, especially after Dafydd James's noteworthy cameo in midfield for the final 20 minutes against France. The partnership of Andy Marinos and Tom Shanklin didn't work because they are too similar and both tried to play in a style that was foreign to them.

They are both powerful abrasive runners and the thought of passing under pressure probably gives them nosebleeds. I know that centres of international standard should be proficient in the art of passing, yet this pair are used almost exclusively by their clubs as gain-line runners on switches and short balls.

Having picked them on that basis originally it is unfair to ask them to play a different way for Wales. The role of the creative centre goes to Iestyn Harris, yet when Marinos was injured against France Hansen chose to bring Rhys Williams on to the wing and move James into midfield.

It would appear that Wales are content to have paid millions for a player who is currently being used as a reserve goal-kicker. Surely there are better ways to develop this talented individual than this.

Harris may also be wondering what he has let himself in for, especially after the post-match dinner a fortnight ago when he was trapped by one of the members of the general committee, who proceeded to tell him how to play the game.

This was only a few minutes before the same committee-man was asking Stephen Jones if he wanted any help with his kicking. It is one thing to chat about the differences in the game with those from an older generation; it is another to be lectured on how to play the game from someone who had little success themselves.

Once more it is time for a prediction and I will continue with my method of providing two opinions. Firstly I suspect that Wales will win by a 10-point margin after a sticky first half.

The performance will be deemed satisfactory if there is a more direct thrust to the play and the players go forward with the ball rather than accept the tackle and go to ground.

Wales possess a number of strong runners but under Graham Henry they were only encouraged to go so far before setting up rucks. That mindset is slowly being challenged and I expect Wales to be more determined with ball in hand.

My other prediction is how many tickets will be sold for the game. It was a near-capacity crowd against France but how many will stump up #38 to watch another game a fortnight later is a different matter.

The WRU are hoping for a 50,000-plus turnout. That might not be too bad but it would still mean that there were over 20,000 empty seats in a stadium that is barely washing its face financially.

With the prospect of the final home match against Scotland coming after the Twickenham weekend, Wales must make hay now because we may not want to see more rugby after that experience.